Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-10-05
THE CALIFORNIA REAL ESTATE

California is apparently on the decline
and IN few months the craze which
threatened to turn the state into g great
conglomeration Of city lots, VIII have
gone down the "bsck entry OF time -
Most Of the real estate that has changed
hsndg during the last two years has been
sold on the payment OF third Of the pur-
chase price cash down, with notes for the
balance. For two or three months pur-
chasers with money have been scarce,
and 10 per cent margin has been suGi-
Gent.
AS q result the state is ssid to be
Hooded with the notes CT spectators VINO
bought land al top notch prices, which
they are now trying yainly to unload.
The amount OF this paper which falls due
within the next few months has been es-
tjmated rs high as $50, 600. 600 or $40,-
000,0 600. Il is not probable that the total
will reach hall that sum, but whatever
the amour. msy be, it l. pretty certain
that great proportion Of the notes will
not be net, and the land Will be thrown
back on the market, With summary ana
complete extinction Of the boon as re-
suit.
There IS always good deal OF fiction
ABOUT Z land boom like the ore nov in
progress IL California, or the movement
which collapsed so disastrously at Winnie
peg several years ego. Many OF the re-
ported sales 81 such times are nc more
legitimate transfers Of real estate thar
the transactions OF G bucket-shop are
honest dealings in stocks. Unlike the
bucket shop, however, these real estate
dealers have some bssis for their tEsns&c-
tons, because the land is always in
sight, aud they have to use deeds to
make sales.
Spectators who buy lands at high
prices on small margins, in reality simply
have an option on the property. Their
chance tor profit lies ia finding q custo-
mer who believes their franchise IS va!u-
dUECs " ECh VIC OOOiA - Ou LuS lnC. cbsC
this is usually possible, because the pre-
valling excitement impairs mems iudg-
ment and makes them willing to pay, or
agree to pay, lsrger prices than they
would otherwise.
When the boom comes to 6 stsndstiu or
begins to decline, purchasers become
scarce, and then the speculators resort to
fictitious sales and fictitious prices to
keep up the excitement q little while
longer il possible. When there are nu-
merous cries OF fraud in this respect it is
about as good sign Of an approaching
collapse as clouds are of rainy weather.
The Argoaaut sounded the warning
last week that the California boom had
reached the stage marked by fictitious
sales. Mr.. Pixley, the editor, challenges
any of the real estate booming firms to
publish the results Of their auction sales,
giving names of purchasers and actual
amounts realized, to see whether they
Will stand the test of publicity. eff half
the real estate transactions are genuine
and bona fde for coin that changes
hands," the editor says, "we will rest
our pen from boom grumbiing until the
excitement is over. Unless the firms
accept this challenge to show their
hands as evidence Of honest sales, we
shall indulge the belief thkt in the real
estate boom in San Francisco srd the
surrounding towns there is large ele-
ment of fraud"
The present boom mad an unusually
solid foundation when it started in
Southern California about three years
sgo. It WINS discovered that large tracts
of farming land, which had hitherto been
supposed to be OF little value, could be
worked probably without irrigation.
Another element was the opening up by
new railroads of many thousands of acres
of rich country hitherto inaccessible.
The development Of these natural ad- |
together with the fact that
many rich tourists from the east were
induced to make investments in the
state, started the upward movement in
prices, which the Argonsut says will
result as disastrously as the mining spec
ulations OF former times.